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Michigan school meal purchasing could be more impactful with local food
A state lawmaker and specialty crop farmer says free school meals in Michigan could be enhanced to support additional local and regional food systems.
Senator Roger Victory tells Brownfield grant-funded food purchasing can be limiting.
“Since we’re not in season 12 months of the year in some of these commodity crops, I like the frozen components, he says. “There’s that quick freeze aspect, so sometimes just changing the definition of what’s can be utilized, we could have that healthy nutritional, locally grown Michigan produce right here in some of our schools and other institutions.”
Wendy Crowley, Farm to Program Consultant for the Michigan Department of Education, oversees the 10 Cents a Meal for Michigan’s Kids and Farms program. She tells Brownfield frozen and dehydrated foods are considered minimally processed in the program, but canned, cooked, or pickled are not.
“There are a lot of USDA sort of coalition community grants right now and we see a lot of partnerships across the state that are working to improve that middle of the supply chain processing,” she says. “So things like wash pack, freeze facilities that are able to accept large amounts of Michigan produce and dehydrate them or freeze them.”
Victory says distribution channels could also be improved to eliminate logistical challenges of getting food from where it’s grown to where there’s demand.
Crowley points to new programs through Michigan State University’s Center for Regional Food Systems that can solve some challenges but says it takes time.
“Schools are feeding far more children because of Michigan school meals, and right sizing that supply chain and that capacity is really what we’re working hard to do,” she shares.
The state is investing $200 million for 1.4 million students to receive free school meals this fiscal year.
Victory recently joined other specialty crop growers to call for relief from federally mandated wage increases. Michigan’s H-2A labor costs have increased nearly 40 percent in the last five years. He says more state food purchasing would be impactful.
AUDIO: State Senator and farmer Roger Victory
AUDIO: Wendy Crowley, Michigan Department of Education
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